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Construction remains one of the industries with very high rates of accidents and ill-health, and many of the 'accidents' are not accidents at all, but occupational safety and health 'incidents', because they could have been avoided by good practices, procedures and equipment, together with appropriate knowledge and responsible attitudes. This problem is at least partially related to lack of proper training. A worldwide analysis by the International Labour Office (ILO) in 2007 concluded that there was a shortage of comprehensive, internationally relevant training materials freely available in the public domain. Construction OS&H is an international occupational safety & health (OS&H) training package, freely available to download from the ILO web site. It is designed specifically for four main groups: clients; design and project management teams; construction companies ('contractors'); and workers; but it will also be useful to other groups, such as government inspectors and company OS&H officers. It provides trainers with a substantial digital resource, rather than set of four linear programmes, so that competent trainers can adapt the contents for a specific programme. It comprises seven main components: Tutors' Guide. This explains the content of the package and how to use it. Knowledge Base. This provides the main sources of the content of the package and includes Downloads of some of the sources. Theme Summaries. Construction OS&H is based on 15 Theme Summaries, typically 25-30 pages each, totalling 424 pages, which provide most of the educational content of the programme. PowerPoint Presentations (PPPs). A PPP has been compiled from each Theme Summary, typically 50 slides each, totalling 802 slides. Model Courses. Although this is a very flexible resource, four Model Courses are provided, one each for clients, design & project management teams, construction companies and workers. Participants' Handbooks. The content of each Model Course has been summarised for printing as a ...

Construction remains one of the industries with very high rates of accidents and ill-health, and many of the 'accidents' are not accidents at all, but occupational safety and health 'incidents', because they could have been avoided by good practices, procedures and equipment, together with appropriate knowledge and responsible attitudes. This problem is at least partially related to lack of proper training. A worldwide analysis by the International Labour Office (ILO) in 2007 concluded that there was a shortage of comprehensive, internationally relevant training materials freely available in the public domain. Construction OS&H is an international occupational safety & health (OS&H) training package, freely available to download from the ILO web site. It is designed specifically for four main groups: clients; design and project management teams; construction companies ('contractors'); and workers; but it will also be useful to other groups, such as government inspectors and company OS&H officers. It provides trainers with a substantial digital resource, rather than set of four linear programmes, so that competent trainers can adapt the contents for a specific programme. It comprises seven main components: Tutors' Guide. This explains the content of the package and how to use it. Knowledge Base. This provides the main sources of the content of the package and includes Downloads of some of the sources. Theme Summaries. Construction OS&H is based on 15 Theme Summaries, typically 25-30 pages each, totalling 424 pages, which provide most of the educational content of the programme. PowerPoint Presentations (PPPs). A PPP has been compiled from each Theme Summary, typically 50 slides each, totalling 802 slides. Model Courses. Although this is a very flexible resource, four Model Courses are provided, one each for clients, design & project management teams, construction companies and workers. Participants' Handbooks. The content of each Model Course has been summarised for printing as a Participants' Handbook. Web site. All the above is available on an ILO web site, for free downloading. The package was validated in depth by bringing together 24 professionals - practicing engineers, academics, trainers, government officials, trades union officials, contractors and consultants - from four African countries, for a two-day workshop in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in 2009. The package was then refined and published on the ILO web site in 2011. Evaluating the practical use of Construction OS&H is difficult because it is freely available for downloading from the ILO web site for anyone to use as they wish. The evidence that we have is that one of the authors used it extensively in a five-day course in Panamá, where it was found to be very effective. A call for feedback from ILO offices around the world reported that an independent consultant used it as the basis for a course in Paraguay, which had very favourable evaluations (summarised in the paper) and that it has been used in courses in Azerbaijan, Kenya, Tajikistan and Tanzania, although it has not been possible to obtain evaluation reports.

A project entitled 'Decent Work for Workers in Construction Industry', launched by the Programme for Workers' Activities of the International Training Centre of the International Labour Office (ITC-ILO), in partnership with the European Federation of Building and Wood Workers (EFBWW) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), aims to increase institutional capacity of the EFBWW and the ETUC affiliates from New Member States and Candidate Countries to engage in constructive sectoral social dialogue at national and European levels. An important part of this project was a two-day Workshop "Occupational Safety and Health in the Construction Industry" held in Budapest in September 2014. Twenty-nine delegates representing 12 trades unions from 10 countries attended the Workshop, many of whom were senior officials. In preparation for the Workshop, a questionnaire was devised that sought the views of these trades unions on a comprehensive range of topics on occupational safety and health in the construction industries of their countries. The purpose of the questionnaire was to begin the Workshop by bringing together the opinions of the participating TUs for discussion to identify the major issues to be taken forward in the next phase of the project. The draft questionnaire was based on a list of 10 important factors taken from previously published work, which ranged from general considerations, such as a national culture of valuing human wellbeing, to more specific considerations, such as personal protective equipment. A questionnaire survey instrument of 36 questions was derived from these factors. The ITC-ILO administered the survey, including translation into the languages of the respondents. All 12 trades unions attending the Workshop responded and it was pleasing to note that senior people, such as presidents and executive secretaries, completed the questionnaires. The responses proved to be very diverse but some clear themes emerged: national and government attitudes to Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) were not very positive but definitely improving; clients generally did not view OSH as an issue for them; large employers were committed to good OSH but small and medium sized enterprises were not; the logic of the business case was recognized but so were the difficulties on implementation; some countries treated their older workers very well; women were in a minority but generally not harassed; and modern equipment, tools and construction techniques were generally seen to be beneficial The final discussion session was very positive: "If we didn't think we could really improve workers' conditions, we wouldn't be here today" concluded one senior trade union official. The results of the survey should provide useful guidance for the remainder of the project.

Tobramycin Inhalation Solution USP (TOBI), a therapy developed to treat lung infections associated with cystic fibrosis (CF), was presented as a demonstration case for collaborative pharmaceutical development at a Clinical and Translational Science Awards Industry Forum on "Promoting Efficient and Effective Collaborations Among Academia, Government, and Industry" held in February 2010. TOBI was developed by PathoGenesis Corporation (Seattle, WA) in collaboration with the academic inventors, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the CF Foundation. The presenters, representing the academic, industry, and foundation partners, each reviewed the program from their perspectives and identified challenges that existed during the discovery, development, and commercialization of TOBI. The attendees were asked to consider other collaborative opportunities that might have further improved TOBI development, including the optimal roles of the academic researchers, foundations, and other agencies when industry drives development and commercialization decisions.

In the UK several Government initiatives have been introduced to encourage women to pursue careers in the engineering professions. Such initiatives have had some success in increasing the number of women studying engineering. In 1973 only 3% of engineering and technology students were women, compared to 15% in 2004/05. However, only 1.6% of all female students in higher education are based in engineering. Furthermore, the increase in women engineering students has failed to translate into an equivalent increase in women engineering professionals, with indications that less than 10% of professional engineers are women. This briefing is being circulated to engineering educators and employers and professional bodies; it offers an insight into women's experiences of engineering education and employment and some recommendations for moving forward. The briefing draws on a recent ESRC funded study conducted by Professor Barbara Bagilhole, Dr Andrew Dainty and Abigail Powell of Loughborough University, and Professor Richard Neale of the University of Glamorgan. In response to the issues outlined above, the study aimed to develop an understanding of women engineering students' earliest encounters with engineering workplaces on their future career intentions. Workplace experiences were examined in the form of the year-long industrial placement taken in higher education, as this usually represents women's first major contact with the engineering industry. The industrial placement also represents a key transitional stage in each student's process of becoming (or not becoming) an engineering professional.